Dehumidifier

ABSTRACT

A dehumidifier according to an embodiment comprises: a main body which suctions air through a suction port and discharges same through a discharge port; a heat exchange part which removes moisture in the air suctioned through the suction port and comprises an evaporator and a condenser; a blowing part disposed between the suction port and the heat exchange part and guides the air from the suction port to the evaporator of the heat exchange part; and an accommodation part disposed under the evaporator and accommodating dehumidified water generated by the evaporator. The evaporator is obliquely disposed with respect to the longitudinal axis of the main body and toward the accommodation part, and the dehumidified water condensed by means of the evaporator can be dropped into the accommodation part by gravity.

TECHNICAL FIELD

One or more example embodiments relate to a dehumidifier.

BACKGROUND ART

In general, a dehumidifier is an apparatus for removing moisturecontained in air, and has been provided with various types ofdehumidifying systems.

In most cases, there has been widely used a cooling dehumidifier thatremoves humidity by condensing moisture contained in air while the airpassing through an evaporator based on a refrigeration cycle.

Such dehumidifier may include a case that forms an appearance, a faninstalled in the case to suction external air, a dehumidifying mean thatremoves moisture by condensing humidity contained in the suctioned air,and a water tank in which water generated in the dehumidifying mean isstored.

The dehumidifying mean may include a compressor that compresses agaseous refrigerant at a high temperature and a high pressure, acondenser that condenses the refrigerant gas discharged from thecompressor with the high temperature and the high pressure, and anevaporator that evaporates a low-pressure refrigerant having passedthrough the evaporator and a capillary (inflation tube).

In such dehumidifier, a refrigerant is circulated by the compressor fromthe evaporator, through the condenser and the capillary, to theevaporator again.

In this instance, when air is suctioned into a case due to rotation ofthe fan, the suctioned air may be cooled by the refrigerant to be belowthe dew point while passing the evaporator and condensed such thatmoisture contained in the air is formed to be waterdrop, and thenremoved.

As the use of the dehumidifier becomes common, research on thedehumidifier has been actively carried out. For example, Korea PatentApplication No. 2011-0098956 filed on Sep. 29, 2011 discloses adehumidifier for home using.

DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION Technical Goals

An aspect is to provide a dehumidifier in which an evaporator isobliquely disposed based on a longitudinal axis of a body to quicklyremove condensate water formed on the evaporator by force of gravity.

Another aspect is to reduce a temperature of an evaporator by quicklyremoving condensate water from the evaporator and activate a heatexchange between the evaporator and air passing through the evaporator,thereby improving a dehumidification efficiency.

Still another aspect is to reduce noise and vibration of a dehumidifierby arranging a condenser above an evaporator in the dehumidifier andflexibly designing an air flow path.

Technical Solutions

According to an aspect, there is provided a dehumidifier including abody configured to suction air through an inlet and discharge the airthrough an outlet, a heat exchanger including an evaporator and acondenser and configured to remove moisture in the air suctioned throughthe inlet, a blower disposed between the inlet and the heat exchanger toguide the air from the inlet to the evaporator of the heat exchanger,and an accommodator disposed under the evaporator to acceptdehumidification water generated in the evaporator.

The evaporator may be obliquely disposed based on a longitudinal axis ofthe body to face the accommodator, so that the dehumidification watercondensed in the evaporator falls into the accommodator by force ofgravity.

The condenser may be obliquely disposed above the evaporator based onthe longitudinal axis of the body to face an upper surface of the body.The air passing the evaporator may rise toward the condenser.

The dehumidifier may further include a guide disposed between theevaporator and the condenser.

The guide may be configured to extend from an upper end of the inlettoward an inside of the body and formed in a shape that covers theevaporator and the blower. The air passing the evaporator may be guidedby the guide to the condenser.

A lower end of the guide may be bent in a direction away from theevaporator or in a direction toward the condenser.

The blower may be obliquely disposed based on the longitudinal axis ofthe body to face the accommodator.

The inlet may be formed in a rear surface of the body. The outlet may beformed in a top surface of the body. The blower may allow the airsuctioned through the inlet to travel toward the evaporator. The airpassing the evaporator may pass the condenser to be discharged throughthe outlet to an outside.

According to another aspect, there is also provided a dehumidifierincluding a body configured to suction air through an inlet anddischarge the air through an outlet, an accommodator disposed in thebody to accept dehumidification water, a blower disposed above theaccommodator to guide the air suctioned through the inlet toward theaccommodator, an evaporator disposed between the blower and theaccommodator and configured to cool the suctioned air to condensemoisture in the air, and a condenser configured to heat the air havingpassed the evaporator while condensing a refrigerant used in thedehumidifier.

The evaporator and the blower may be obliquely disposed based on alongitudinal axis of the body to face the accommodator, so that thedehumidification water condensed in the evaporator falls into theaccommodator by force of gravity.

The dehumidifier may further include a guide disposed above theevaporator and the blower.

The guide may be formed to cover the blower and the evaporator. A lowerend of the guide may be bent in a direction away from the evaporator orin a direction toward an upper surface of the body. The air passing theevaporator may be guided along the guide toward a side surface or theupper surface of the body.

The condenser may be disposed between an upper surface of the body andthe guide. The air passing the evaporator may rise toward the condenser.

The inlet may be formed in a front surface or a rear surface of thebody. The outlet may be formed in a top surface of the body. The blowermay allow the air suctioned through the inlet to travel toward theevaporator. The air passing the evaporator may pass the condenser to bedischarged through the outlet to an outside.

Effects

According to example embodiments, it is possible to provide adehumidifier in which an evaporator is obliquely disposed based on alongitudinal axis of a body to quickly remove condensate water formed onthe evaporator by force of gravity.

According to example embodiments, it is possible to reduce a temperatureof an evaporator by quickly removing condensate water from theevaporator and activate a heat exchange between the evaporator and airpassing through the evaporator, thereby improving a dehumidificationefficiency.

According to example embodiments, it is possible to reduce noise andvibration of a dehumidifier by arranging a condenser above an evaporatorin the dehumidifier and flexibly designing an air flow path.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a dehumidifier according to anexample embodiment.

FIG. 2 illustrates an example of a dehumidifier viewed from sideaccording to an example embodiment.

FIG. 3 illustrates another example of a dehumidifier viewed from frontaccording to an example embodiment.

FIG. 4 illustrates an example of removing condensate water from anevaporator.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

Hereinafter, example embodiments will be described with reference to theaccompanying drawings. The following description is provided accordingto some aspects of the example embodiments, and forms part of a detaileddescription of the example embodiments.

Also, descriptions of functions and constructions that are well known toone of ordinary skill in the art may be omitted for increased clarityand conciseness.

It should be understood that the terms used in the specification and theappended claims should not be construed as limited to general anddictionary meanings, but interpreted based on the meanings and conceptscorresponding to technical aspects of a dehumidifier of the disclosurebased on the principle that the inventor is allowed to define terms.

Accordingly, the description proposed herein is merely an example forthe purpose of illustration, and is not intended to represent alltechnical aspects related to the hybrid powertrain apparatus of thedisclosure, so it should be understood that other equivalents andmodifications could be made thereto without departing from the spiritand scope of the disclosure.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a dehumidifier according to anexample embodiment. FIG. 2 illustrates an example of a dehumidifierviewed from side according to an example embodiment. FIG. 3 illustratesanother example of a dehumidifier viewed from front according to anexample embodiment. FIG. 4 illustrates an example of removing condensatewater from an evaporator.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a dehumidifier 10 may include a body 100 anda heat exchanger 200. The body 100 may suction air through an inlet 110and discharge the air through an outlet 120. The heat exchanger 200 mayinclude an evaporator 210 and a condenser 220 and remove moisture in theair suctioned through the inlet 110.

The evaporator 210 may cool air F suctioned through the inlet 110 tocondense moisture in the air F. The condenser 220 may be disposed abovethe evaporator 210 to condense a refrigerant used in the dehumidifierand heat air F′ passing through the evaporator 210.

The dehumidifier 10 may include a blower 300 disposed between the inlet110 and the heat exchanger 200 to guide air from the inlet 110 to theevaporator 210 of the heat exchanger 200, and an accommodator 400disposed under the evaporator 210 to accommodate dehumidification watergenerated in the evaporator 210.

The dehumidifier 10 may further include a compressor 600 disposed belowthe accommodator 400 to compress a gaseous refrigerant at a hightemperature and a high pressure, and a water tank 700 detachablyattached to the body 100 and located in a front part of the body 100.The water tank 700 may receive the dehumidification water accommodatedin the accommodator 400 and store the dehumidification water.

The evaporator 210 may be obliquely disposed based on a longitudinalaxis of the body 100 to face the accommodator 400, so that thedehumidification water condensed in the evaporator 210 falls into theaccommodator 400 by force of gravity.

In other words, the evaporator 210 may tilt toward a ground or a lowersurface of the body 10, rather than vertically disposed with respect tothe ground or the lower surface of the body 100. However, embodimentsare not limited thereto, and the evaporator 210 may also be disposedhorizontally with respect to the ground or the lower surface of the body100.

In this case, the condensate water formed on the evaporator 210 may beremoved from the evaporator 210 more quickly than in a case in which theevaporator 210 is disposed vertical to the ground or the lower surfaceof the body 100 of the dehumidifier. This is because the condensatewater formed on a part of the evaporator 210 directly falls toward theaccommodator 400 by force of gravity without passing through anotherpart of the evaporator 210.

The condenser 220 may be obliquely disposed above the evaporator 210based on the longitudinal axis of the body 100 to face an upper surfaceof the body 100, so that the air passing the evaporator 210 rises towardthe condenser 220. This is because a guide 500 is provided to guide theair passing through the evaporator 210 to travel toward the uppersurface of the body 100.

The dehumidifier 10 may further include the guide 500 disposed betweenthe evaporator 210 and the condenser 220.

The guide 500 may extend from an upper end of the inlet 110 toward aninside of the body 100 and be formed in a shape that covers theevaporator 210 and the blower 300 and the evaporator 210. A lower end510 of the guide may be bent in a direction away from the evaporator 210or in a direction toward the condenser 220. Accordingly, the air passingthe evaporator 210 may be guided by the guide 200 to the condenser 220.

In this example, the blower 300 may be obliquely disposed based on thelongitudinal axis of the body 100 to face the accommodator 400.

In other words, like the evaporator 210, the blower 200 may also tilttoward the ground or the lower surface of the body 10 rather than beingdisposed vertical to the ground or the lower surface of the body 100.

This is so that a flow direction of the air F suctioned through theinlet 110 is directed toward the accommodator 400 or the lower surfaceof the body 100 by arranging the blower 300 to be tilted. Through this,the air F suctioned through the inlet 110 may thoroughly pass throughthe tilted evaporator 210.

The inlet 110 may be formed in a rear surface of the body 100 and, theoutlet 120 may be formed in a top surface of the body 100. In thisexample, the blower 300 may allow the air F suctioned through the inlet110 to travel toward the evaporator 210 so as to be dehumidified. Also,the air F′ passing through the evaporator 210 may pass the condenser220, and then be discharged to an outside through the outlet 120.

In the dehumidifier 10 having the above structure, the blower 300 mayallow the air F suctioned through the inlet 110 to pass through thetilted evaporator 210 while travelling toward the accommodator 400 orthe lower surface of the body 100.

Thereafter, the air may be cooled while passing through the evaporator210. Also, the condensate water may be formed on the evaporator 210.Through this, the air may be dehumidified. In this example, theevaporator 210 may be obliquely disposed based on the ground or thelower surface of the body 100, so that the condensate water formed onthe evaporator 210 is more quickly removed by force of gravity. As such,by quickly removing the condensate water from the evaporator 210, atemperature of the evaporator 210 may be reduced. In addition, a heatexchange between the evaporator 210 and the air passing through theevaporator 210 may be actively performed such that a dehumidificationefficiency is improved.

The dehumidified air may be guided by the guide 500 toward the condenser220 disposed above the evaporator 210. A temperature of the dehumidifiedair may increase while passing through the condenser 220. Thedehumidified air having the increased temperature may be discharged tothe outside through the outlet 120. In this instance, dehumidificationwater condensed in the evaporator 210 may fall into the accommodator 500and the dehumidification water accommodated in the accommodator 500 maybe stored in the water tank 700.

In this example, an air flow path may be flexibly designed by arrangingthe condenser 220 above the evaporator 210 and arranging the guide 500between the evaporator 210 and the condenser 220. The flexible air flowpath may reduce noise and vibration.

Referring to FIG. 3, a dehumidifier 10 may include a body 100 thatsuctions air through an inlet 110 and discharges the air through anoutlet 120, an accommodator 400 disposed in the body 100 to acceptdehumidification water, a blower 300 disposed above the accommodator 400to guide the air suctioned through the inlet 110 toward the accommodator400, an evaporator 210 disposed between the blower 300 and theaccommodator and 400 to cool the suctioned air to condense moisture inthe air, and a condenser 220 that heats the air having passed theevaporator 210 while condensing a refrigerant used in the dehumidifier.

The evaporator 210 and the blower 300 may be are obliquely disposedbased on a longitudinal axis y of the body 100 to face the accommodator400, so that the dehumidification water condensed in the evaporator 210falls into the accommodator 400 by force of gravity.

The dehumidifier 100 may further include a guide 500 disposed above theevaporator 210 and the blower 400.

The guide 500 may be formed to cover the blower 400 and the evaporator210. A lower end of the guide 500 may be bent in a direction away fromthe evaporator 210 or in a direction toward an upper surface of the body100, so that the air passing the evaporator 210 is guided along theguide toward a side surface or the upper surface of the body 100.

The condenser 220 may be disposed between the upper surface of the body100 and the guide 500. The air passing the evaporator 210 may risetoward the condenser 220.

In this example, the inlet 110 may be formed in a front surface or arear surface of the body 100. Also, the outlet 120 may be formed in atop surface of the body 100. The blower 300 may allow the air suctionedthrough the inlet 110 to travel toward the evaporator 210. The airpassing the evaporator 210 may pass the condenser 220 to be dischargedthrough the outlet 120 to an outside.

Accordingly, as illustrated in FIG. 4, in the dehumidifier, thecondensate water formed on the evaporator 210 may be quickly removed andfall into the accommodator 400. Through this, a temperature of theevaporator 210 may be reduced. Also, a heat exchange between theevaporator 210 and the air passing through the evaporator 210 may beactively performed such that a dehumidification efficiency is improved.

While this disclosure includes specific examples, it will be apparent toone of ordinary skill in the art that various changes in form anddetails may be made in these examples without departing from the spiritand scope of the claims and their equivalents. The examples describedherein are to be considered in a descriptive sense only, and not forpurposes of limitation. Descriptions of features or aspects in eachexample are to be considered as being applicable to similar features oraspects in other examples. Therefore, the scope of the disclosure isdefined not by the detailed description, but by the claims and theirequivalents, and all variations within the scope of the claims and theirequivalents are to be construed as being included in the disclosure.

1. A dehumidifier comprising: a body configured to suction air throughan inlet and discharge the air through an outlet; a heat exchangercomprising an evaporator and a condenser and configured to removemoisture in the air suctioned through the inlet; a blower disposedbetween the inlet and the heat exchanger to guide the air from the inletto the evaporator of the heat exchanger; and an accommodator disposedunder the evaporator to accept dehumidification water generated in theevaporator, wherein the evaporator is obliquely disposed based on alongitudinal axis of the body to face the accommodator, so that thedehumidification water condensed in the evaporator falls into theaccommodator by force of gravity.
 2. The dehumidifier of claim 1,wherein the condenser is obliquely disposed above the evaporator basedon the longitudinal axis of the body to face an upper surface of thebody and the air passing the evaporator rises toward the condenser. 3.The dehumidifier of claim 2, further comprising: a guide disposedbetween the evaporator and the condenser, wherein the guide isconfigured to extend from an upper end of the inlet toward an inside ofthe body and formed in a shape that covers the evaporator and the blowerand the air passing the evaporator is guided by the guide to thecondenser.
 4. The dehumidifier of claim 3, wherein a lower end of theguide is bent in a direction away from the evaporator or in a directiontoward the condenser.
 5. The dehumidifier of claim 4, wherein the bloweris obliquely disposed based on the longitudinal axis of the body to facethe accommodator.
 6. The dehumidifier of claim 5, wherein the inlet isformed in a rear surface of the body, the outlet is formed in a topsurface of the body, the blower allows the air suctioned through theinlet to travel toward the evaporator, and the air passing theevaporator passes the condenser to be discharged through the outlet toan outside.
 7. A dehumidifier comprising: a body configured to suctionair through an inlet and discharge the air through an outlet; anaccommodator disposed in the body to accept dehumidification water; ablower disposed above the accommodator to guide the air suctionedthrough the inlet toward the accommodator; an evaporator disposedbetween the blower and the accommodator and configured to cool thesuctioned air to condense moisture in the air; and a condenserconfigured to heat the air having passed the evaporator while condensinga refrigerant used in the dehumidifier.
 8. The dehumidifier of claim 7,wherein the evaporator and the blower are obliquely disposed based on alongitudinal axis of the body to face the accommodator, so that thedehumidification water condensed in the evaporator falls into theaccommodator by force of gravity.
 9. The dehumidifier of claim 8,further comprising: a guide disposed above the evaporator and theblower, wherein the guide is formed to cover the blower and theevaporator, a lower end of the guide is bent in a direction away fromthe evaporator or in a direction toward an upper surface of the body,and the air passing the evaporator is guided along the guide toward aside surface or the upper surface of the body.
 10. The dehumidifier ofclaim 8, wherein the condenser is disposed between an upper surface ofthe body and the guide and the air passing the evaporator rises towardthe condenser.
 11. The dehumidifier of claim 7, wherein the inlet isformed in a front surface or a rear surface of the body, the outlet isformed in a top surface of the body, the blower allows the air suctionedthrough the inlet to travel toward the evaporator, and the air passingthe evaporator passes the condenser to be discharged through the outletto an outside.